﻿<p>Most
people have a thing or two in their lives that they're deeply
passionate about. Perhaps it's volunteer work or local politics, or
maybe it's making soap or writing. If you have a true passion for
something, it's well worth your time to try to dip your toes deeply
into that passion and see if you can turn that passion and talent into
some additional income - or perhaps a new career.</p>
<p>Here are ten things you can do in your spare time to funnel that
passion into something that can earn some additional income. Not all of
these will apply to any given idea you might have, but three or four
should apply to pretty much any concept you can think up.</p>
<p>The first step, though, is to get started. The day you make a
commitment to follow something you're passionate about is the first day
of the rest of your life.</p>
<p><span style="font-size: 120%;"><strong>Blogging</strong></span><br /> Blogging offers a lot of advantages for a person who's passionate about
a specific topic. The time you need to work on it is flexible, plus you
can easily do it at home with just a computer, for starters, and by
placing a few ads on it, you can earn some extra dollars while
exploring areas you're passionate about. You can write about pretty
much any topic you can imagine. Plus, it's pretty easy to get started,
with sites like <a href="http://www.wordpress.org/">Wordpress</a> and <a href="http://www.blogger.com/">Blogger</a> ready-made to help you with the beginning steps.</p>
<p>While it's easy to start with blogging, it takes a lot of work and
skill to make it successful. Successful blogging takes skill with the
written word (at the very least, solid grammar and the ability to write
something that follows a logical progression), the ability to market
yourself (to a degree), the ability to connect well with others
(especially those with similar interests), and the focus and
determination to keep at it even when things aren't going so well.</p>
<p>The real fuel behind blogging comes from two things: are you truly
passionate about something and are you willing and able to write about
that passionate topic every day? If so, you might be able to translate
a passion into a successful blog.</p>
<p><span style="font-size: 120%;"><strong>Teaching / tutoring</strong></span><br /> Teaching and tutoring work well if you have a particular skill that can
be taught to others and you have patience. If you have an aptitude for
a musical instrument, for example, teaching can be a very good way to
expand on that passion and share it with others while earning a bit of
money. Another possibility is to look for community art centers where
you may be able to earn a small fee by teaching a particular artistic
skill to a group of people.</p>
<p>When I was in college, I spent some of my spare time working as a
math tutor for people in the lower-level mathematics classes. I'm a
fairly patient person and I intuitively understand most mathematical
concepts, so I was able to really make this take off. I wound up
tutoring several people through two semesters of trigonometry and
almost talked myself into becoming a high school math teacher.</p>
<p>If you have an skill that others admire and sometimes attempt to
learn and you have a good deal of patience, teaching or tutoring can be
a great way to explore it.</p>
<p><span style="font-size: 120%;"><strong>Providing services</strong></span><br /> There's an individual on our block who loves cold weather. He loves
bundling himself up, heading out in the cold, and moving snow around -
can you even imagine someone who sings when running their snowblower?
This guy has realized that most people don't want to do this and thus
he'll go around and blow off other people's driveways and sidewalks for
$5 or $10 (or whatever) in cash. After a nice snowstorm, he can easily
make $100 in profit just by handling the houses near him - it takes him
a couple of hours and he really enjoys it.</p>
<p>Are there any tasks that you really enjoy that others find mundane,
like mowing or fixing computers? You probably have an opportunity right
there to provide a service to them, one that will put cash in your
pocket for doing something you naturally enjoy. With some basic
equipment and some reliability, you can easily transform a task you
enjoy doing into some cash just by asking around and seeing what's
available.</p>
<p>I couldn't help but think of my oldest nephew when I was writing
this. He's one of those kids who just can't sit still, so when he comes
to visit, he's always jumping around like a jackrabbit. I told him that
he should channel that into doing something useful and convinced him to
mow my lawn, which I paid him for. This opened up a whole new can of
worms for him and now he seems to be building a small mowing business.</p>
<p><span style="font-size: 120%;"><strong>Creating videos</strong></span><br /> If you have a digital camera capable of taking videos, you can likely
turn your passion into some money online by making videos and uploading
them to a revenue-sharing video site. MetaCafe, for example, has a <a href="http://www.metacafe.com/producer_rewards/">Producer Rewards</a> program that pays $5 for every 1,000 times your video is viewed.</p>
<p>Let's say, for example, that you're a gymnast. You could make videos
of your neatest-looking routines out in the yard and upload them, or
show how anyone can do some basic techniques, like an instructional
video on how to do a cartwheel (I'd watch). You can follow similar
logic for almost any passion you might have. The best part is, once a
video is done and uploaded, all you have left to do is market it a bit
by pointing people to it. Make sure you title it well. Send the link
around to friends you might have, asking for comments. Send the video
link to bloggers who may be interested in your topic.</p>
<p>If you have the basic video equipment and something interesting to
show off, this can be a great way to earn some side money, and it can
earn some <em>very</em> good money if your content is compelling
enough to get others to watch. Since you can make videos in your spare
time and there's little additional effort once the video is uploaded,
this can be a great way to sit back and earn a few bucks.</p>
<p><span style="font-size: 120%;"><strong>Selling at farmers markets</strong></span><br /> If you're passionate about making things or growing them, farmers
markets are a great place to sell them directly to others. You can sell
almost anything at a farmers market - handmade soaps, homemade bread,
vegetables and fruits, and so on. If you make the price reasonable, you
can often sell quite a bit of it.</p>
<p>As a regular attendee of one local farmers market, I can attest to
the truth of this. There's one elderly lady there each week selling her
freshly-baked homemade bread. Every hour she's there, she drops the
price on everything a little bit, so if you want the best stuff, you
buy early and pay a premium. At the end, she'll often trade the bread
to others for produce. In other words, because she enjoys baking bread
in her spare time, she can translate that directly into some cash and
some fresh produce.</p>
<p>Do you like gardening, baking, or making things like soap? The local
farmers market might be the perfect place to translate that into some
pocket cash.</p>
<p><span style="font-size: 120%;"><strong>Writing freelance articles / books</strong></span><br /> Another option (besides blogging) if you have any skill with the
written word is to write freelance articles (and perhaps books as well)
on whatever topic fills you with passion. Passionate writing is the
best kind of writing, especially if the author has even a sliver of
talent - the enthusiasm and love just comes right through the page.</p>
<p>The only problem is that it's often difficult to break into writing
at first. Your best approach is to look for local independent
publications and see whether you can work out an arrangement, even for
no pay, to help you get some stuff into print. Then, you can use those
printed publications as leverage to fuel you on to bigger things - and
bigger pay.</p>
<p>Freelance writing like this is a great spare time activity,
especially if the time you have to commit to it isn't highly regular.
While the threshold for entry can be difficult, once you're in, it's a
great way to use a few spare hours and your own creativity to produce
something of value.</p>
<p><span style="font-size: 120%;"><strong>Developing a connected project through work</strong></span><br /> Many workplace environments offer some latitude for self-motivated and
creative employees to suggest ideas for new workplace initiatives. This
can be a great area to fuel your passions and give yourself some
real-world experience in that area.</p>
<p>For example, one person I know who worked for a large company wanted
very much to get involved with social work. She talked up a workplace
outreach project at work as a way for the company to show community
involvement and charity and was eventually chosen to head up this
initiative. After a while, she was able to transform at least part of
her job into following her passions for social work and, eventually,
was able to leap into that area as a career change.</p>
<p>Many people also use this kind of opportunity to drum up business
for their side passions. One of my supervisors was able to shoehorn his
love for woodworking into a contract to build some desks and tables for
the workplace. He was able to spend his weekend - and some work time -
putting this into place, and he was able to make a very nice profit
from the effort.</p>
<p>See what initiatives might be available in your workplace to combine
something you're passionate about with the work you already do. You
might be surprised at the doors that open up for you - the connections
you make and the knowledge you gain can be incredibly valuable.</p>
<p><span style="font-size: 120%;"><strong>Taking classes / starting over</strong></span><br /> Another possibility is to simply start over with a new career, starting
off with taking classes. While this won't earn you money from your
passion in the short run, it could easily lead to a new career in a
field that fills your belly with passion, fire, and drive.</p>
<p>I am reminded of another friend of mine who spent his Saturdays
attending classes to earn an MBA, simply because he knew he was an
effective team leader (and he relished leadership) but he also knew
that without the degree there were some glass ceilings he would never
break through. Once he completed the MBA, he switched jobs, joining
another organization and quickly moving up through the ranks. He earned
a lot of extra income for himself by taking classes on the side.</p>
<p>When you really discover your passion, it's usually the <em>right</em> choice to follow it, even if that road initially has costs. Taking
classes is certainly a cost, but if it puts you in the right place to
really chase after your dreams, the cost isn't really that great after
all.</p>
<p><span style="font-size: 120%;"><strong>Volunteering / working at low end jobs</strong></span><br /> If there's an area you're passionate about but you don't have any idea how to break in, <em>volunteer</em> - or take a very low-end job. Go to the person that you hope to learn
from (a potential mentor) and tell them that you're willing to work for
peanuts for a while in order to learn the tricks of the trade. Devote
your Saturdays or your weeknights to this and you'll learn a great deal
about what it takes to succeed.</p>
<p>If you're in college, this is a <em>great</em> way to experience
areas of interest. Look for minimum wage or volunteer work for
professors on campus who are in areas that might be of interest to you.
You might be cleaning lab equipment or photocopying things at the
library, but if you do your work diligently, ask intelligent questions,
and pay attention, you'll get far more out of it than that minimum wage
income. You'll likely discover how the field works and how deep your
passion goes for the area.</p>
<p>I am very passionate about cooking and if I were at a different
place in life, I might do much the same thing at one of the best
restaurants in town. In other words, I'd gladly offer to work there for
low wage in exchange for some real opportunities to learn.</p>
<p>Remember, what you're earning here is not money, but knowledge and
connections. These can prove far more valuable than an extra dollar or
two an hour over the long haul.</p>
<p><span style="font-size: 120%;"><strong>Arranging sales through another local business</strong></span><br /> This works hand-in-hand with the farmers market idea above, but takes
it in a slightly different direction. Quite often, at local small
retail shops, they'll be happy to work out an arrangement with you to
put your product on display and sell it in exchange for some portion of
the proceeds from it. Local gift shops are particularly good in this
way and offer a great opportunity for you to sell homemade crafts and
soaps and candles that you might make in your spare time.</p>
<p>One advantage of this approach is that it requires even less of your
time than the farmers market does. You just make more product, take it
to the place where it is sold, and collect the money. There is some
startup time, but that mostly revolves around building the
relationships needed to get your product in place. The big disadvantage
is that there are often limits on what you can sell with this approach.
You'll likely be restricted by the type of product and the packaging
and labeling that it requires.</p>
<p>Still, it's an easy way to earn a few extra dollars from doing
something that you're passionate about whenever you have the spare time
to do it, and that's a godsend for people who enjoy making items like
these.</p>